The Villainess VTuber Tears People Apart

I was heading to the academy.

More precisely, I was heading to the academy that had been swallowed by the Gate.

In the carriage, it was just Cecilia and me.

I could have taken soldiers from the Iris Ducal Family, but moving too many people would inevitably draw the attention of other families or factions.

After much deliberation, I concluded that solving this incident with just Cecilia and me was the right decision.

“You can see it from here too.”

Beyond the carriage window, a red crack was visible.

There was still some time before we would reach the academy, but the buildings, shrouded in an ominous crimson hue, looked as though they were drenched in a red filter.

As Cecilia gazed at the scene, she was strangely smiling.

“My homeland──the Kingdom of Allemis, was destroyed by the ‘Monster of the Red Mist.'”

And then, she casually spoke those words.

Cecilia’s past was somewhat famous among the nobles.

“Back then, a red Gate also opened in the sky. Monsters poured out, and the Kingdom of Allemis was swallowed by the Red Mist.”

“Is what’s currently swallowing the academy also the ‘Monster of the Red Mist’?”

“I haven’t been able to confirm that yet. I was too busy running away to see its form, but probably─.”

Cecilia’s words trailed off.

But I didn’t need her to finish; I could already understand. Cecilia was certain of it.

“I told you it was for revenge, but the truth is, I don’t have any real desire for vengeance. The people of the lost Kingdom of Allemis likely don’t seek revenge through me either. It’s just that.”

It’s just that this, too, is a trial.

That’s what Cecilia said on that day.

***

===

[Broadcast] The lady is doing better, isn’t she?

Even though she’s fighting without a weapon.

[Comments]

– It’s just a massive talent gap.

– Rinco seems rusty from not playing Labyrinthos in a while.

– Got ruined by league junkies, lol.

– At this point, it’s kinda sad.

– Laura won, lol.

– Take that, Rinco!

– From now on, the 6th gen of EYEAI will reign.

===

[Broadcast] I came.

I saw the lady deflect Rinco’s greatsword and beat her up, and I came…

It was leaking, so now I’m at the urology clinic, watching the second set ban-pick…

[Comments]

– Damn, that’s some filthy writing.

– That’s incontinence, old man.

– Watching this while showering in the bathroom.

ㄴ I don’t even have underwear, just wearing a shirt.

ㄴ What the hell, lol.

– How many virgin points did you lose for this, ddd.

– But Laura is kind of hot.

– Are you Sora?

– The scariest part is that this could be Anna or Rion.

===

[Broadcast] Round 2: A-grade Virgin picks Dark Knight

It’s been a while since we’ve seen a Dark Knight.

[Comments]

– It’s not a good map for Berserker.

ㄴ (Author) Berserker is map-dependent?

ㄴ It’s a map where it rains constantly, so you can’t use the passive.

ㄴ (Author) Didn’t know that, that’s pretty interesting.

ㄴ Labyrinthos is surprisingly a detailed game.

===

[Broadcast] It’s gonna be a clean 3-0.

I thought A-grade Virgin would win, but Rinco might not even take a single set, lol.

===

The expectations placed on me were beyond my capacity.

I received hateful comments, but they didn’t bother me. I was used to it.

How many streamers have never received hate comments? Besides, these weren’t even that bad.

So, the viewers’ reactions were fine.

-“Don’t be too hard on yourself.”

-“You’ll do better next time! Today, you just weren’t in the best condition, right?”

Encouragement from my teammates.

But it wasn’t fine.

Knowing that I couldn’t meet those expectations, yet still having to carry them—that was Kisaki Rinco’s burden.

-Clang!

Rinco’s greatsword came crashing down, but Aurora parried it.

Rinco was taken aback.

“Gladiators are structured so that they have to start with a downward strike.”

Gladiators use the greatsword as a pivot, embedding it in the ground to perform kicking attacks as their weapon of choice.

Conversely, to plant the greatsword into the ground, a downward strike is necessary. For Laura, reading Rinco’s moves wasn’t difficult.

Of course, since the Dark Knight wields a one-handed sword, she couldn’t completely deflect the greatsword. The weight difference was simply too great.

She merely redirected it slightly.

But that was enough.

Just reducing the physical force of the greatsword a little was enough to ruin Rinco’s plan of using it as a pivot.

Without embedding the greatsword into the ground, Aurora closed in.

“Tsk.”

Rinco clicked her tongue and unleashed a powerful kick.

-Whoosh!

A kick strong enough to crush bones if hit incorrectly.

Rinco had experienced situations where she couldn’t use her ‘pivot’ many times before.

Because of that, she was somewhat prepared for close combat.

Laura narrowed her eyes and retreated again. The angle of the kick was oddly perfect.

‘If I had armor, I would have forced my way through.’

Of course, she had discarded her armor at the start of the match.

Without it, one wrong hit could end her. Thus, Laura retreated far.

Even with an opening, Rinco was once a Gladiator who reached the Master tier.

Perhaps that’s why she was having a hard time.

As Laura pulled back, the two of them kept their distance, staring each other down.

They were both deep in thought.

Rinco no longer swung her sword recklessly. Laura had prepared much better for fighting a Gladiator than she had expected.

For Laura, approaching was also difficult.

She thought Rinco’s skills had deteriorated from not playing Labyrinthos for so long, but Rinco’s accumulated experience hadn’t been wasted.

Out of all the opponents Laura had faced in Labyrinthos, Rinco was the strongest.

That was inevitable, and it was also true.

‘To defeat Laura, I have to make a pivot somehow.’

Rinco was the first to come to that conclusion.

Looking at the way things had gone so far, Laura had been sealing off Rinco’s sword movements consistently.

It seemed that Laura believed, “If Rinco can’t create a pivot, the Gladiator’s strength is nullified.” And indeed, that strategy was working well enough that Rinco couldn’t land a meaningful hit on Laura.

In that case, she had to exploit her range.

Embed the greatsword at a distance where Laura couldn’t counter it, and then press her with its superior range.

As it happened, there was quite a bit of distance between Rinco and Laura at the moment.

Rinco, seeking to make more use of her range advantage, slowly retreated, keeping an eye on Laura’s movements.

‘To defeat Rinco, I can’t let her create a pivot.’

Laura, on the other hand, was thinking the same thing.

To be frank, she didn’t think she was lacking compared to Rinco.

It wasn’t arrogance. Rinco wouldn’t know it, but Laura had stood on countless battlefields where her life was on the line.

Thus, she wasn’t inferior in terms of experience, physical ability, intelligence, or instinct.

If there was one area where she fell short, it was her understanding of the Gladiator class.

‘Though I’ve faced Gladiators before.’

There’s a big difference between facing one and playing one.

Moreover, Rinco was a veteran who had played Gladiator for a long time. She likely understood the class’s strengths and weaknesses better than anyone, having experienced every possible situation as a Gladiator.

If she could render that experience meaningless…

Rinco would no longer be an opponent.

“Come on.”

Laura deliberately provoked her, signaling that she was ready for a frontal clash.

Rinco, a bit incredulous, responded to the challenge.

-Kwa-jik!

Rinco rushed in, swinging her greatsword down and planting it into the ground.

And as Rinco tumbled and flipped her body,

In that instant,

-Kwagagagaga!!

A wall surged from beneath her.

The Dark Knight’s second skill, .

“…Ugh!”

Rinco was thrown back.

The knockback from the .

As the wall pushed out the greatsword embedded in the ground, Rinco was sent flying into the air along with it.

A crisis, no doubt about it.

In the midst of this, Rinco gripped her greatsword tightly.

‘I… still haven’t let go of the greatsword.’

It wasn’t just because of her will to keep fighting. Deep down, she was ready to give up at any moment.

Yet, she hadn’t let go of the sword. It was simply a habit from playing Gladiator. Losing your sword often meant immediate defeat.

That tiny habit was what stopped Rinco from giving up.

And, ironically, there was still an opportunity.

‘…If it’s about form, I can control it.’

Rinco looked down at the ground. There was still quite some distance before she hit it.

The Gladiator was a class specialized in stance control. From the beginning, it had a skill set suited for that.

And Rinco, who had played Gladiator extensively, was adept at stance control.

Although it was her first time adjusting her posture while falling from the sky, she felt like she could do it.

“MadMask….”

The name of her old nemesis escaped her lips.

This was the first time she had been so thoroughly crushed since then. And her opponent wasn’t even a pro-gamer, but a newly debuted junior, still in the diamond rank.

The situation also felt strangely reminiscent of that day.

The Black team had pinned their hopes on Rinco, and she had tried to prove herself against MadMask.

Ichika, her peer.

Michael and Gabriel, her juniors.

Those who had been defeated by the 6th generation, what they had left might now hinge on Rinco’s victory.

So, was this revenge for them?

Or was this a chance for Rinco to prove herself?

Without knowing the answer, Rinco──swung her arm.

-Thud!

Upon landing, she embedded the greatsword into the ground using only the strength of her arm.

Then, with all the force she could muster, she kicked toward Aurora.

-Slash!

Aurora’s sword sliced through Rinco’s ankle as it swung down.

***

“Wow…. Aurora’s really good, huh?”

One of the pro-gamers remarked.

“Hey, does this mean Dark Knights can counter Gladiators?”

“In theory, yes, but I think we need to see how it plays out in practice. Might need some more research.”

“Just from watching this, you can tell, right? Dark Knight isn’t a troll pick, and it’s been proven in team fights for a while. It just lacks CC.”

“Could be good to pick the extended wall range trait and knock out those turret guys.”

“Hey, you should practice Dark Knight.”

The pro-gamers marveled at Aurora’s play, discussing new strategies.

Meanwhile, Arima remained silent.

‘Rinco….’

Only Arima took this match so seriously.

Last year, Arima had been the owner of the Black team in the Streamer League.

He had drafted Rinco as the first-tier pick, taught her various techniques, and even told her to face off against MadMask.

‘I should have been the one to face MadMask back then.’

Despite having many regrets throughout his pro-gaming career, that day’s events were perhaps the biggest regret of his professional life.

Arima was a pro-gamer.

Everyone around him was a pro-gamer, and it was their job to accept mistakes and losses.

If you couldn’t handle it, you weren’t cut out to be a pro-gamer in the first place.

At least, that’s what people who watch pro-gaming think.

But Rinco was just a streamer.

She was just a player who enjoyed the game.

If Rinco had been hurt by Labyrinthos VR, then it was the fault of someone like him, a Labyrinthos VR pro-gamer.

‘She still hasn’t gotten over it.’

Arima let out a sigh.

Winning or losing didn’t matter, as long as she could find meaning in it.

He prayed for that, but all he could do was watch.

The distance between Rinco and this virtual world called VR was too vast.

Only Aurora, who stood with her sword drawn against Rinco, could intervene.

Would Aurora become a new despair for Rinco?

Or would Aurora be her salvation?

What Aurora would come to mean to Rinco—Arima still didn’t know.